-
Chuam Beach: Candlestick Rock, K-Drama Spots, and a Suspension Bridge
Looking for a beach to visit on the east coast of Korea? Come summer in Korea all I do is seek the coast. There are some absolutely beautiful beaches in Korea and not all of them are as busy as say Haeundae in Busan. To be honest, I tend to enjoy the beaches on the east coast of Korea more than the ones on the southern coast. The southern coast has other draws though for sure but today, I want to talk about Chuam Beach (추암해수욕장) in Donghae, Korea. We initially went to find the Donghae Mureung Health Forest and the wellness facilities there and after spending one day in…
-
Sansawon & Baesangmyeon Brewery: A Traditional Korean Liquor Museum Near Seoul
Just northeast of Seoul in Pocheon is one of the most beautiful and also traditional Korean liquor breweries you can find in Korea. Sansawon (전통술박물관 산사원) is a museum and tasting room just next to a beautiful brewery called Baesangmyeon (배상면주가) that features traditional onggi pots, those giant brown earthenware pots you see around Korea, that create a maze to wind through before ending up at a beautiful Hanok building and pavilion where you can laze away the afternoon. I’d heard of Sansawon a few times over the years and was intrigued by the pictures but just never found the time to get up there… until recently. Want to take…
-
The Parsley Seed Energy Serum By AwakeAsleep: The Best Anti-Aging Serum I’ve Tried
I CANNOT live without this Parsley Seed Energy Serum by AwakeAsleep. Seriously, it might be the first time I’ve ever fallen in love with a serum. My dry skin has found this extremely hydrating and it is definitely one of the best anti-aging serums I’ve found. If you haven’t heard of parsley serums or AwakeAsleep, you’re probably not alone. I was gifted this product at an event and it was the most intriguing out of the products I received. I mean.. parsley seed in a serum?? What’s that about? While most people think of parsley as a garnish on a dish that they may or may not want to eat,…
-
How To Get An FBI Background Check
There are a number of reasons why you would need an FBI background check, also called a criminal record check (CRC) depending on which country you’re coming from. For this post, we’re assuming that you need it for a job. Whether you’re getting a job at home or traveling abroad for work, at some point, you’ll likely have to sign a paper for a company to do a background check on your behalf or you’ll have to get one yourself. One of the most time-involved documents to get for the South Korean E2 teaching visa, besides the apostille, is obtaining a national-level FBI background check. The FBI background check is…
-
Where To Stay In Hongdae: Best Hotels, and Guesthouses in Seoul!
Hongdae is one of the best areas to stay in Seoul if you want easy airport access, lively streets, shopping, cafes, and nightlife all in one neighborhood. Centered around Hongik University, it’s popular with both tourists and locals, and after living around Hongdae for more than a decade, I’ve helped plenty of visiting friends and famil figure out where to stay here. Is Hongdae a good place to stay when you visit? It sure it! Now you just have to decide where to stay. After that, here is a list of what to do in Hongdae from brunch to evening. Where do you want to stay in Hongdae? Skip around…
-
Wish Formula: The Fermented Hydra Ceramide Lotion & Essential Toner Review
I’ve got a few Korean beauty brands that are my go-to for various reasons and Wish Formula is one of them. While I reach for Troiareuke when I want to clean my face, I reach for Wish Formula when I want to nourish and hydrate my skin. Almost everything I’ve tried from Wish Formula has been great but these two products have by far been the best for my dry skin. I’d never heard of fermented skincare products prior to using these but after, I definitely looked into them more. The Wish Formula Fermented Hydra Ceramide Lotion and the Fermented Hydra Essential Toner are currently my essential skincare products producing…
-
SlowBox: The CSA To Use In Korea
Slowbox is a service that delivers produce direct from local farmers to consumers throughout the country of Korea. I’m always on the lookout for ethically-sourced produce and I used to always head to local farmers markets like Mangwon Market since we lived so close. However, since moving and only having the large brand grocery stores within walking distance now, Slowbox has been an amazing option for us for more than a year now. Slowbox is a community supported agriculture (CSA) program that sources their produce from small family owned farms around Korea and you can meet their farmers right on their Slowbox Instagram page. Here’s what you’ll find in this…
-
My Honest Allbirds Review: Tree Skippers & Wool Runners After Years of Wear in Korea
Allbirds are sneakers made primarily from natural materials including merino wool, eucalyptus tree fiber, and sugarcane-based soles, by a sustainability-focused footwear brand. I’ve been wearing them for years, through Seoul summers, Korean winters, and one very memorable monsoon in Vietnam, and this is my honest, long-term take, updated for 2026. In a continuous endeavor to be more sustainable, shop from more eco-friendly brands, and reduce my waste, I was pretty stoked when my mom gifted me a pair of Allbirds two years ago. She gave them to me because they were the most comfortable sneakers she’d ever worn, but I was ecstatic when I learned of their eco-friendliness. From that…
-
Yoogibanggaok Daffodils In Seosan: A Must-See Spring Flower Spot in Korea
Seosan, just a couple hours south of Seoul down in Chungcheongnam-do, is one of the best places to visit in Korea in the spring. There are numerous gorgeous flower spots in the area and one of them is the daffodil covered mountain in Yoogibanggaok (유기방가옥). The daffodils, in their sheer number in this one spot, are an absolute must see. In my many years of living in Korea, I haven’t seen this many daffodils anywhere else. There are of course other yellow flowers that bloom each spring like the Japanese dogwood, sansuyu, in Icheon and the canola flower fields on Jeju Island and the hidden island of Ulleung-do, but this……
-
Teach English In Korea: A Guide For Getting A Job
South Korea is one of the top places in Asia to teach English and there are ample reasons from a higher salary to perks and benefits that make it so. The popularity of teaching English can probably also be attributed to the rise of Hallyu, K-dramas, and K-pop, but whatever is drawing you to the Land Of The Morning Calm, you need to know how to get a job teaching English in Korea and the requirements too so let’s get started. Do you want to teach English in Seoul? Teach English in Busan? Or maybe go to the Hawai’i of Korea and teach English in Jeju? Here is a guide…
-
Nammireuksa Temple: The Largest Seated Buddha In Asia Is In Jeollanam-do, Korea
I have definitely visited my fair share of Buddhist temples in Korea. I love visiting the temples honestly. They are calming, always quiet, and while many people see a few and think they’ve seen them all, I never think that and have definitely been able to find unique aspects of every one I’ve visited. One such trip to Jeollanam-do had us passing by Nammireuksa Temple (남미륵사) and while there really was nothing else in the area to see, I couldn’t resist a stop. This temple in Korea really does stand out from the rest in a few ways for me so I wanted to do a whole post so more…
-
The Majang Suspension Bridge & The Cafes To Visit There Too!
There are so many things to do in Paju, an area just northwest of Seoul in the Gyeonggi-do province and visiting Majang Lake is definitely one of them. Majang Lake was probably not on most peoples’ radar until a couple years ago when the longest suspension bridge in Korea was opened. This beautiful suspension bridge spans the water from what forested side to another that features an observatory. There are numerous gorgeous cafes and restaurants to stop into too. It’s a great area to take a day trip from Seoul and it’s pretty easy to get to as well. Looking for something to do this weekend? This is the spot…
-
How To Get TEFL Certified In 5 Steps
One day I decided to Google, “how to make money and travel the world,” and teaching English abroad popped up as one of many results, but I wasn’t too familiar with the field of Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL). After searching for information on teaching English abroad, I watched so many videos and searched the internet for every piece of information regarding this potentially new career path. Numerous results suggested obtaining TEFL certification, but where to start? Below, I’ll lay it all out for you. Here is the essential guide for how to get a TEFL certification, what is TEFL, and how long it takes to get TEFL…
-
Korean Tea: A Guide to 27 Traditional Teas, Their Benefits, and Where To Buy Them
While most of the world views tea as a beverage made by putting hot water on some type of leaf, Koreans seem to make tea with anything and everything they can put hot water on. Hot water on flowers? Why not? Hot water on some roots from the garden? Definitely. Because of this, traditional Korean tea houses can have long rather substantial lists of teas. It can be overwhelming. It took me forever to remember the names of the Korean teas that I enjoyed, and I often forget when it comes to seeing boxes of teas in the market. Since I’ve taken numerous tourists to a traditional tea cafes and…
-
Bucheon Art Bunker B39: A Former Garbage Plant Reborn as Art Space
There’s a specific category of Seoul-adjacent outing I find genuinely compelling: old factories and industrial sites being given new lives as culture spaces. The Bucheon Art Bunker B39 (부천아트벙커 B39) falls squarely into this category. An old garbage incineration plant in the suburb of Bucheon, Gyeonggi-do, it was converted into an art and culture space, opened in 2018, and like most of Korea’s national and public cultural venues, it’s completely free to enter. Both my daughter and I love a good artistic installation, and the industrial aesthetic of regenerated spaces makes them more interesting than most conventional museums. This one is worth the trip from Seoul. Here’s what you can…
-
The Seoul City Tour Bus Guide: What To See & Do When You Hop On Hop Off
If you’ve never joined a City Tour Bus, Seoul is the place to do it. City Tour Buses are a great way to see a city and not have to worry about transportation. See the hot spots of Seoul from the upper level of a bright red bus. I rode my first City Tour Bus in New York City and absolutely loved the experience. It’s just something that is so touristic and fun. Don’t waste money on taxi fares and buses. Don’t get confused in the subway. For your first trip to Seoul, take the time to ride this bus and get views of the city while getting a lay…
